My Love Of The Law

Document Manangement Tips For Your Workers Comp Case

25 February 2016
by Alan Medina

An on the job or work related injury means you may be eligible to receive workers compensation. The process for receiving this can be quite long and drawn out, though, and you may even need to go to court in the process. One way to minimize the stress of these proceedings and improve your chances of getting just compensation is to be organized. Put together a file in a binder to keep all documents pertaining to your case. This guide will show you how.

Tools

3-inch wide binder

Hole punch

Dividers with pockets

Sheet protectors

Baseball card protector sheets

Section #1: The Timeline

This section simply consists of a calendar, starting with the month the injury first occurred. You can print off calendar pages online or tear the pages from a wall calendar and punch them to go into the binder.

Use the calendar to create a timeline of events by recording everything on the pages that pertains to the injury. You should also use the calendar to track doctor and court appointments, so that you have a written record of everything you have done and when it was done, that pertains to your claim.

Section #2: The Log

The second session contains a log of every doctor or therapy visit. Record date, time, physician name, and the reason for the visit. Also, use this log to track mileage or transportation costs and lost wages, since you may be able to recoup these as well. After each appointment, record what was done or the diagnosis, along with any prescribed medications and the treatment plan recommended.

Section #3: Receipts

This section is simple -- keep all receipts for anything pertaining to your workers' comp case. You can slide these into page protectors so they fit in neatly. This is also a good section to keep track of lost wages if you are unable to work due to your injury.

Section #4: Correspondence

The first item in this section is probably going to be the original accident report. Any and all correspondence between you and your employer or their lawyer needs to be kept in this section. Make copies of any correspondence you send and keep it as well. Make sure everything is dated with the day your received it or sent it. You should also print and file any emails you receive, as well as keeping a call log with notes for any calls pertaining to the case. Finally, if you are given business cards, keep these in the baseball card holder in this section so you can find them easily.

About Me

In my opinion, there is nothing more exciting or complex than the legal system. For as long as I can remember, I have dreamed of standing in front of a jury and presenting the best possible case (with lots of dramatic flare, of course). Unfortunately, the many "if's" in life have prevented me from realizing that dream thus far.
While I am may not be ready to start my legal career quite yet, my love for the law still remains constant. This page is my way of sharing with the world everything that I have learned about this amazing field thus far. It is my hope that the information contained in these pages will help you through your current legal matters and perhaps help you to nurture your own love of the law.